The older machines will happily sew over pins and the newer ones will
not. When my mother bought her Sears Kenmore in the early 1960s, she was
very impressed by what was apparently the standard sales demo. In order
to prove that the machine could sew over pins, the salesperson (well
practiced, of course), sewed over a ruler, the spiel being that if the
machine could pass over a ruler it could pass over anything. That was
her first and only machine (and seldom used at that; I wish I had taken
it when she died) so it was a new concept to her. But I had no problems
sewing over pins with either a treadle or an early electric, let alone
my own Kenmore which my parents bought for me some years after they
bought hers. It was only when I started buying higher-end and more
modern machines that I ran into problems.
For about the last 20 years, I have pinned each seam, basted it, removed
all the pins, sewn the seam, removed the basting (to avoid thread marks
when pressing), and then pressed it. I went through two clothing design
programs in college, one couture and one ready-to-wear. I was taught
that pins should be placed a minimum of an inch apart and for curves and
difficult fabrics, closer than that, usually about half an inch. I
imagine I could just hold the fabric together instead--when I took an
industrial sewing class I had to do exactly that. I also could remove
pins as I sew. But I would prefer to either pin it all and then sew it
all, or baste it all and then sew it all. I never use any kind of glue
when sewing, either adhesives to take the place of basting, or
Fray-check for seams. I am convinced that residue would be left on the
fabric and/or the machine. Also, I like using traditional methods,
though I do modify them to some extent at need.
I also, BTW, never mark with anything but tailor's chalk or tailor's
tacks and thread tracing.
I can see Carol's point about using a walking foot for machine
quilting. But otherwise, basting should continue to work for me. I
realize that most people don't hand baste, and being able to sew over
pins again would have been convenient, but I don't really mind basting.
You can also use a slip-basting stitch for stripes and plaids which
works better than pins for keeping them matched while you sew. At any
rate, now I know that the Bernina 1008 will not sew over pins, and I
will not damage it by experimenting with it. I still have painful
memories of ruining an expensive new machine that way, which was way
worse than having a broken needle. Bad design though, IMO.
Fran
Lavolta Press
Books on historic sewing
www.lavoltapress.com
On 9/21/2012 6:24 PM, Kim Baird wrote:
Of course I remove them as I go along.
Sewing over a pin is bad for the needle, can chip it if not break or bend
it.
I find it hard to believe that you need so many pins to hold a simple seam
together. Sometimes I don't pin at all. Although curves and matching plaids
are a different story. . .
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